Summary
- TV shows must make tough decisions on plotlines that can disrupt the overall narrative and risk losing the audience.
- Some scrapped storylines could have improved the series, while others could have destroyed its success.
- Characters like Klaus Mikaelson in The Vampire Diaries and Steve Harrington in Stranger Things were originally planned to be killed off but were kept due to their popularity.
TV shows often have to make bold choices to stay relevant, popular, and entertaining, but some storylines end up being so shocking that showrunners scrap them altogether, and rightfully so. Every series has its own unique feature that draws viewers in, be it the main couple, the central mystery, or the captivating atmosphere. If any of that is compromised, the show risks losing its audience and getting canceled well before its time. Creators have to make tough decisions, and some of them include abandoning the plots that do not fit in with the overall narrative or those that can disrupt an important timeline.
Some of the storylines may have been great additions to the show that would have shaken up the series for the better. Others could have been fatal to the success of the show itself, destroying what it had been building for several seasons. For instance, if Friends had made Monica and Joey the main couple of the series, viewers would never have gotten Monica and Chandler's hilarious friends-to-lovers story, and they are still regarded as one of the best couples on modern television. Friends is hardly the only example of a show dodging a bullet because the creators scrapped a controversial plot.
10 The Vampire Diaries
Klaus Mikaelson Is Vanquished In Season 3
The Vampire Diaries
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- Cast
- Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder, Steven R. McQueen, Paul Wesley, Kat Graham, Michael Trevino, Michael Malarkey, Zach Roerig, Candice King, Matthew Davis
Klaus Mikaelson made his grand entrance in The Vampire Diaries season 2 and instantly became a fan-favorite character, even getting his own spinoff, The Originals. It may come as a surprise, but the original plan for Klaus was to die at the end of season 3. In a 2012 interview with TVLine, showrunner Julie Plec shared, "Our intention was, that after a long, arduous year of trying to vanquish and defeat the villain [Klaus], our heroes would prevail, and he would be no more." Apparently, Joseph Morgan turned out to be so charismatic that The Vampire Diaries simply decided to keep Klaus for longer. The actor stayed on for season 4 in the main role before moving on to The Originals where Klaus was eventually killed off.
9 Friends
Elizabeth Is Pregnant, But Ross Isn't The Father
Friends
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- Cast
- Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer
- Seasons
- 10
Ross was dating Elizabeth, his former student, but they ultimately broke up because their age gap became too obvious in Friends season 6 finale "The One with the Proposal." However, according to the DVD commentary for the episode, Elizabeth was initially supposed to stay for longer — she would announce that she was pregnant, and Ross would be dealing with the news for a whole season. In the season 7 finale, Ross would find out that he wasn't the father of Elizabeth's baby, and she would be written out of the series. Since the showrunners had already had Rachel's pregnancy storyline in mind, they decided against a similar subplot at the time.
8 How I Met Your Mother
Victoria Is The Mother
How I Met Your Mother
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- Cast
- Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan, Bob Saget
The Mother was the most important character in How I Met Your Mother, but viewers didn't get to meet her until the season 8 finale "Something New," where Tracy's face was shown for the very first time. Back in 2005, the series was just starting to branch out, and creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas didn't know whether the show would be greenlit for another chapter. Having been introduced in season 1, episode 12, "The Wedding,” Victoria was the back-up Mother in case How I Met Your Mother was prematurely canceled (via Deadline). That didn't end up happening, but Ted and Victoria went on to have a heartbreaking story of their own.
7 Gossip Girl
Nate Archibald Is Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl's big reveal that Dan Humphrey was the big gossip was underwhelming and confusing, to say the least. Turns out, the reason for those feelings could have been the fact that Dan wasn't the original contender for the title. According to executive producer Joshua Safran, Nate was his first choice for Gossip Girl. As he was the one who never sent any tips to the scandalous gossip (as of season 5 when Safran was still working on the show), he just made more sense in the role. Another candidate for the job was Eric, but since New York Post correctly guessed the identity of the intended Gossip Girl early on, the creators decided to change course.
6 Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Tara Maclay Is Revived In The Finale
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
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- Cast
- Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Charisma Carpenter, Dan Rubin, David Boreanaz, Seth Green, James Marsters
Willow and Tara's love story was one of tragedy and heartbreak, as Willow lost her one true love just when their relationship truly started to blossom. In Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 6, episode 19, "Seeing Red," Warren shot Tara in an attempt to kill Buffy, and this launched Willow's dark arc. The show's creator, Joss Whedon, didn't intend Tara's death in the series' most controversial episode to be permanent. In fact, he wanted to bring Tara back at the end of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and have her reunite with Willow, but Amber Benson had already moved on to other projects by that time and didn't wish to reprise her role (via IGN).
5 Glee
Will Schuester Is A Crystal Meth Addict
glee
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- Cast
- Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Jessalyn Gilsig, Jane Lynch, Jayma Mays, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Matthew Morrison, Amber Riley
Glee was a surreal show, shrouded in controversy both in-universe and in the outside world, but it could have been even worse. In an episode of the And That's What You REALLY Missed podcast, creator Ryan Murphy revealed that the first script for Glee was "the NC-17 version of show choir" and that the adorable Mr. Schuester was a crystal meth addict who was "unraveling." In addition, Matthew Morrison wasn't the first choice for the role. In fact, Schuester was written specifically for Justin Timberlake. Thankfully, this version of Glee never came to fruition, and Ryan Murphy is the person to thank for that.
4 Riverdale
Anyone Can Be Jason Blossom's Killer
Riverdale
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- Cast
- Camila Mendes, Marisol Nichols, Ashleigh Murray, Cole Sprouse, Ross Butler, Madelaine Petsch, K.J. Apa, Luke Perry, Lili Reinhart, casey cott
Riverdale season 1's main mystery was the identity of Jason Blossom's killer, and in episode 12 "Chapter Twelve: Anatomy of a Murder", the culprit was revealed to be his father, Clifford. Back in 2017, Cole Sprouse, who played Jughead Jones, shared with Collider that even the Riverdale cast didn't know who the killer was until the episode aired simply because they filmed a few different endings to the scene. He even joked that he wished that Jughead would turn out to be the murderer. If that had been the case, Riverdale's tone would have become a lot darker, and Jughead's journey would probably have ended on a different note altogether.
3 New Girl
Jess Kisses Schmidt During True American
New Girl
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- Cast
- Zooey Deschanel, Max Greenfield, Hannah Simone, Damon Wayans Jr., Lamorne Morris, Jake Johnson
In New Girl season 2, episode 15, "Cooler," Nick and Jess' romance properly started when Nick kissed Jess out of the blue after refusing to lock lips with her earlier, during a game of True American. Originally, creator Liz Meriwether planned for Jess and Schmidt to end up trapped in a kissing scenario during the game, but ultimately changed the storyline to Nick and Jess, which led to the debate about whether their first kiss had to happen like that at all. Thanks to the last-minute changes, Nick and Jess' first kiss turned out to be completely unexpected for everyone involved.
2 Stranger Things
Steve Harrington Dies In Season 1
Stranger Things
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- Cast
- Finn Wolfhard, Joe Keery, Jamie Campbell Bower, Brett Gelman, Caleb McLaughlin, Maya Hawke, David Harbour, Matthew Modine, Priah Ferguson, Gaten Matarazzo, Winona Ryder, Charlie Heaton, Sadie Sink, Millie Bobby Brown, Joseph Quinn, Dacre Montgomery, Natalia Dyer, Noah Schnapp
Joe Keery's Steve Harrington has become one of the most beloved characters on the show, so it is hard to believe that Stranger Things wanted to kill off Steve in season 1. Apparently, Steve would never have progressed past Nancy's douchebag boyfriend if it weren't for Joe Keery's charming personality that took the Duffer brothers by storm. The creators loved the actor's energy and what he brought to the character so much that they just decided to change the narrative of the series to keep Steve around. This move paid off — Steve's impact on Stranger Things is undeniable.
1 Doctor Who
The Doctor Helps Out Harry Potter
Doctor Who
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- Cast
- Jenna Coleman, Jodie Whittaker, Alex Kingston, David Tennant, Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi
- Seasons
- 26
Doctor Who has had quite a few fun Christmas episodes full of the magic of the holiday season, but this story-that-never-was would have been on the next level. During his first showrunner term, Russell T. Davies reportedly wanted to do an episode where the Harry Potter universe would come alive due to alien interference and David Tennant's Tenth Doctor would have to team up with J.K. Rowling herself to take down the most dangerous villains of her own world (via The Telegraph). Sadly, this plot was scrapped, and Doctor Who never provided a platform for the most epic British supercrossover.
Sources: TVLine, Deadline, IGN, Collider, The Telegraph
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November 12, 2023 at 04:00AM
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10 Scrapped Storylines That Would Have Completely Changed Their TV Shows - Screen Rant
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